


Cooperation

by SolarMorrigan



Category: Darkwing Duck (Cartoon 1991), DuckTales (Cartoon 2017)
Genre: First Meetings, Gen, they just don't know it yet, this is the beginning of a beautiful partnership I swear
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-30
Updated: 2019-01-30
Packaged: 2019-10-19 12:01:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,228
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17600975
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SolarMorrigan/pseuds/SolarMorrigan
Summary: Darkwing Duck meets Gizmoduck and isn't particularly impressed with his track record. (Though, Gizmoduck isn't particularly impressed with his attitude, so at least they're even.)





	Cooperation

**Author's Note:**

> Written for [iminwaytoomanyfandoms](https://iminwaytoomanyfandoms.tumblr.com/) over on Tumblr, who requested Darkwing Duck and Gizmoduck working together for the first time. I'm afraid this doesn't _quite_ match up with the request, but I do have other plans for these two!
> 
> This is also the first time I've written Darkwing; took me a bit to figure it out, but hopefully he came out alright!

A city like St. Canard always had its problems, and Drake liked to think he was perfectly in tune with them. Wherever evil struck, wherever villainy lurked, wherever ducks dressed in clown suits chuckled deviously or plant-based lifeforms menaced civilians, Drake – rather, _Darkwing Duck_ was there to put a stop to it (and pose for a picture if there was time).

Yes, Drake had seen all manner of strange and terrible things during his time as St. Canard’s caped crusader.

A one-wheeled robotic duck was pretty new, though, he would admit.

No matter; whatever the threat, Darkwing Duck was on the job.

Drake positioned himself for the perfect dramatic entrance, waiting at the mouth of an alley just a little up the street that the mechanical mystery was speeding down, and tossed a smoke pellet just as it was set to pass.

“I am the terror that flaps in the night! I am the recommended 5,000-mile oil change in the vehicle of justice! I am–”

“You’re _Darkwing Duck!”_ The robot gasped.

Drake scowled, dropping his cape from its dramatic flair. “I was getting to that, yes,” he huffed. “And you, you menacing mass of metal, have picked the wrong city to meddle with!”

The robot frowned; it was a strangely natural-looking expression. In fact, that was a very natural-looking beak it had on its face. Interesting.

“I’m not meddling with the city, I’m–” the robot paused, as if something had occurred to it, and glanced down. “I don’t really look _menacing_ , do I?”

Odd thing for a robot to be concerned with. “You’re an awfully big robot, bub,” Drake said. “Lotta room to hide weapons on you.”

The robot’s beak gave a strange twist, an expression Drake couldn’t quite decipher without the top half of the face to work with.

“But I’m not a robot,” the robot insisted.

Drake cocked an eyebrow. “You sure look like a robot to me.”

“Well, it’s – I’m in a suit. I am _Gizmoduck!”_

The robot – the not-robot? _Gizmoduck_ announced its—his?—name in a way that felt practiced and proud; a proclamation of some kind of intent – possibly one that Drake was supposed to recognize.

Unfortunately, the name “Gizmoduck” meant nothing to Drake.

“Okay…” Drake waited a moment, but nothing more was forthcoming; Gizmoduck seemed to be waiting on him. “And?”

“Oh, you haven’t–? Sorry, right,” Gizmoduck cleared his throat awkwardly. “I’m a hero from Duckburg.”

Immediately, Drake bristled. “A _hero?_ St. Canard already has a hero, and that’s _me!_ Darkwing Duck! And _you_ – wait,” the mention of Duckburg, combined with the robotic suit pinged on something at the edge of Drake’s memory. “Wait, wait, waaaait a minute.”

Gizmoduck drew back a little, turning his head to glance around the street. “What?”

“I remember you now!” Drake snapped his fingers, pointing at Gizmoduck, who smiled. “You were on the news a few months ago. Didn’t you set fire to a bank and then blow up?”

The grin fell from Gizmoduck’s beak quickly. “I didn’t – when you put it like that it sounds… less than inspiring…” his voice softened somewhat from the deep register he’d been speaking with, before he remembered to affect it again. “My debut was a little rough, I will admit, but that was months ago. I’ve improved a lot since then!”

“Forgive me if I’m not convinced,” Drake drawled. “And just what are you doing in _my_ city, anyway? Looking for a hospital to blow a hole through?”

Gizmoduck frowned, crossing his arms over his chest with a slight _clank_. “ _No_. I’m here tracking a criminal.”

“Oh, yeah? Well, you can just wheel yourself right on home to Duckburg, then! St. Canard is _my_ territory, and that goes for any evildoers here, too!” Drake declared.

“Normally I’d cede to your experience, but this particular evildoer came from Duckburg. That makes them my responsibility.”

Drake snorted. “It’s not _my_ fault you let one of your criminals escape. Run along back to whatever garage you came from, buddy, and let a professional clean up the mess.”

“Look, I’m sorry for stepping on your toes, but this can’t be helped,” Gizmoduck said, beak still set firmly in a frown, though his voice was carefully level. “You’re going to need my expertise.”

Rolling his eyes, Drake prepared to inform Gizmoduck why he didn’t need his help, his expertise, or his explosive tendencies—things around St. Canard blew up quite enough on their own, thank you very much—when the conspicuous clanging call of a burglar alarm rang out from down the street.

“This sounds like a job for Darkwing Duck! And _not_ ,” Drake added hastily, when it seemed as though Gizmoduck was gearing up to follow him, “some Duckburg interloper dressed in tinkertoys!”

Without waiting for a response, Drake set off down the street, seeking out the building experiencing the criminal incursion – the jewelry store on the corner, by the looks of the broken front window. It seemed that whoever was in there wasn’t even trying for subtlety.

Drake was reaching for his gas gun when a voice beside him made him jump.

“According to my sensors, the person I’m looking for is inside that store,” Gizmoduck said, the suit easily keeping up with Drake as he ran.

“Geez!” Drake skidded to a halt outside the jewelry store. “Can’t you take a _hint?”_

“I’ve never been very good at that,” Gizmoduck shrugged, almost apologetically.

“Then allow me to make myself perfectly clear: _get OUT of my city!”_ Drake bellowed.

“Yeah, _Gizmodud_ ,” a voice drawled from the doorway of the jewelry store, “you’re not wanted here. G’wan back to Duckburg.”

Both Drake and Gizmoduck’s attention snapped back to the store, where a pigeon dressed in dark clothing was stepping out with a lumpy bag, no doubt filled with loot.

“Yeah,” another voice – no, the _same_ voice sneered from behind the pigeon, “G’wan back to Duckburg, Gizmodud.”

When the pigeon with the bag stepped aside, there was another pigeon behind him, identical right down to the dark-hued outfit.

“Oh, blathering– _this_ is why you need my help,” Gizmoduck muttered to Drake.

“Because of jewelry store robbing twins?” Drake scoffed.

The two pigeons before them, who were until this moment relatively stationary and smug, began to snicker. The first one reached for a rather conspicuously gaudy metallic band strapped around his wrist, and suddenly there weren’t two pigeons – there were three.

Drank blinked. “…jewelry store robbing triplets?”

The pigeon’s hand moved on the wristband again, and two more identical pigeons appeared before them.

“Quintuplets?” Drake corrected faintly.

“He’s using an experimental duplicator, stolen from McDuck Enterprises labs!” Gizmoduck said quickly, falling into a defensive position. “I’ve been briefed on the technology, _that’s_ why you need me!”

“I’m beginning to think we’re going to need more than just you and me,” Drake admitted, turning until he was back-to-back with Gizmoduck, watching as they were quickly surrounded by chortling pigeons.

Gizmoduck let out a nervous little laugh. “You see now why I had trouble containing this to Duckburg?”

“I’m getting the gist,” Drake said, hand on the hilt of his gas gun. “How about this: I’ll suspend any further poor opinion of you until I see how you handle yourself in a fight.”

“Uh… sure?”

“Good. Now then,” Drake whipped his gun from his side, aiming for the pigeon directly in front of him, “ _suck gas, evildoer!”_

**Author's Note:**

> Also posted on [Tumblr](http://solarmorrigan.tumblr.com/post/182426805178/cooperation-ducktales-2017darkwing-duck-gen)


End file.
